13 February 2014

What would happen if you
lost everything? If the people who were supposed to love you
unconditionally were no longer there for you, how would your world
change?

Madeleine Becker lost everything when her parents died
when she was ten years old. Ripped from her home and everything that
she has ever loved, she is forced to start all over again. The only way
for her to move on is to build walls around her heart and keep everyone
at a safe distance. Her logic: she can't get hurt if she doesn't fall
in love.

That theory is blown to pieces when she meets Reid
Connely during her freshman year at college. He is gorgeous and darkly
mysterious. He understands Maddy's pain all too well, but sharing his
pain would mean breaking down the walls he put up around his own heart.
Conflicted between loving Maddy and hiding his dark past, Reid starts to
reevaluate his world. Maddy's inner strength, snarky personality and
breath taking beauty help Reid to make peace with his past.

Together they find out what happens when they let love in.

I want to start this review by acknowledging the amazing writing ability of
Melissa Collins. Her words flowed like poetry to me. While I love all of my
Indie authors and a majority of them are very talented, every once in a while
you read one that you feel like has that special "it" factor and you
cannot believe they have not been signed by one of the big six. Melissa did
that for me! I devoured this story in one sitting and cannot wait to read the
rest of the series (which I would have started immediately had I not had other
reviews due).
Now onto the story. We meet Maddy and Reid who have both had tortured pasts.
They meet one night at a college party and it was instant attraction for both
of them, however they had both built their walls up so high, they may never
crash down.

"Self-preservation is a double-edged
blade-it keeps you safe, but at a fairly large cost."

The story was told in a dual POV (which I love). I liked hearing about their
thoughts on what they were currently feeling. Reid had always been a playboy,
love em and leave em kind as to not form any attachments.

"Love 'em and Leave 'em. Yeah that's
always been how I work and it works for me."

So, once we get past all of the love/hate and they get together, I am
floored by what amazing people they each are in their own right. But together,
sigh....., they are just perfect!

"Happy? Are you kidding? Maddy, you are
the reason I breathe. Without you, my life would have no meaning at all, so
saying that you 'make me happy' is a huge fucking understatement."

I will say, there is so much more to this story. They go through a big
trauma and not only was I hooked to the book at that point, I also bawled my
eyes out (actually I did that quite a bit in this book-for happiness and in
sadness). I guess what I am saying is that this book made me FEEL and I loved
every minute of it. I highly recommend this one to anybody! I would shout it
off the rooftops if I thought it would make people go grab the book. Also, if
you are going to grab it, I highly recommend you just splurge on the box set
because trust me, you will want to continue this series!
*On a side note I would like to mention one other thing. I ALWAYS look at
reviews on Amazon. I may not read them all but I look at the star ratings. Out
of curiosity I checked this one to see how others felt about it. Imagine my
shock to see that is had 7 1* ratings! (out of 224) But for the life of me, I
cannot imagine ANYBODY not enjoying this book. What this showed me is that
there is something for everyone. I will never again pass on buying a book due
to negative reviews!*

There was a group playing quarters on the island and
another group lining up shots on the breakfast bar – so not my scene. I
just shrugged my shoulders, opened the door, pulled out a bottle of water and,
when I turned around to walk back outside, I face-planted into a wall of solid
muscle.

“Hand me one?” His voice was smooth and... gruff at the
same time. Red-faced, I turned back around and got him his water, glad
for the cool respite that the opened refrigerator door offered.

“Here you go.” I could not peel my eyes away from his
mouth as he moved the bottle to his lips. They were perfect - beautiful
and full in a completely masculine way. I watched, completely fascinated,
as his throat moved, downing the water in three or four large gulps. He wiped
his mouth with his forearm and I couldn’t help but let my eyes travel up the
rest of his arm to his biceps and shoulders – those were the same as his lips –
perfect. Amazingly, gorgeously, utterly, divinely perfect. Muscled
and tanned, his arms were mouthwatering.

“Thanks…” he stared blankly at my face for a minute and I
couldn't help but wondering if he liked what he saw. He cleared his
throat and roused me from my little daydream where the gorgeous boy is
mesmerized by the maybe-a-little-above-average looking girl. That’s when
I realized he was asking for my name.

I’ve always been an avid reader.Majoring in English Literature was a no
brainer.Becoming a teacher and
instilling my love for reading into my students was also a no brainer.I’ve spent the last ten years teaching and
I’ve loved (mostly) every minute of it.When I was home on maternity leave for my third son, I discovered a new
genre that sparked my creativity.My
passion for writing sprang from my love of reading and once I knew I had a
story to tell, I couldn’t wait to get it out there.I only hope that my readers enjoy reading my
story as much as I enjoyed writing it.